


Million Reasons

by malefiswent



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Gay, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Spoilers, Lemon, M/M, Post-Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Romance, Scorbus, Slash, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Smut, Teen Angst, Teen Romance, Yaoi, best friends to boyfriends, rated M for later smut, teen boys in love, the cursed child sequel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2016-11-18
Packaged: 2018-08-29 13:06:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8490910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/malefiswent/pseuds/malefiswent
Summary: After saving the wizard world, Albus and Scorpius took months to go back on tracks and regain their families’ trust, and now they’re beggining their fifth year at Hogwarts filled with - slightly different - plans about the future. Scorpius doesn’t think he can fit into that world anymore, and when he expresses his desire to finish his education elsewhere, Albus will do everything he can to prevent his best friend and soulmate from leaving him. However, on the search for reasons to make him stay - which includes new friends and new magic experiences - dark areas and unexplored feelings shall come to life. Maybe what they have just isn’t enough anymore, but will they have the guts to go further?





	1. Chapter One

The thick smoke on the station steamed Albus's sight among all the loud chats, metal trolleys' wheels running through the floor, birds singing and leather shoes stepping all at once. The young man awkwardly hugged his father - something entirely new, but they had been trying to build a warmer relationship - and his mother one last time before following, side by side with Lily, towards the Hogwarts Express, on platform 9 ¾, which was already whistling as an announce it was about to leave.  
He nodded while passing by his uncle Ron and Hermione, who were giving Rose and Hugo their farewells with hugs and recommendations. Before he needed to force an unconfortable moment of cordiality with Rose, who was walking towards him with her trolley, Albus opened a huge smile and ran off when he saw, a few feet away, a very blonde figure with an emerald green detailed uniform happily waving at him.  
"Scorp! I missed you so much!" he said, pushing his friend's trolley away so he could hug him, feeling his heart getting warm while the ferret moved on its cage. "I can't believe I survived a whole summer without seeing you once."  
"I know, mate, my absence is unbearable." Scorpius replied jokingly, hugging the other boy back tightly. "I missed you too. Our parents were cruel, don't you think? I think I would literally die if I spent five more minutes at my grandpa's farm, fishing with him and dad. I hate fish! But the poor man needs some company and support ever since mommy died."  
Albus reacted to the characteristic uncontrolled chatting that he'd missed so much with a smile.  
"And you needed some 'peace of mind to get your head in the place'" he replied, mocking Draco's voice tone while separating from his friend. "My dad's been repeating the same bullshit since July, too. A law workers camping about discipline and prudence with my uncle Percy isn't exactly what I'd call 'ideal vacations'".  
Scorpius couldn't contain a giggle while they grabbed their trolleys again and walked together towards the usual wagon's door. People whispered and pointed while they passed by, even more than in the previous years - after all, now they weren't just the sons of Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy, but two young wizards who had stopped Voldemort's return. However, they simply ignored, like they used to.  
"Come on, Al, don't blame the old guys. We were very reckless when we jumped the train on our way to school. We were lucky that the worst that's happened to us was having a whole school year with McGonagall breathing on our necks like a sargent and a boring summer. They needed to make sure our boldness would take a break".  
The two boys entered the train, and while heading trough the usual compartment, Albus smiled and answered "That's too much to ask from us, don't you think? But i really don't intend to revert anyone's death this year. Where's your father, by the way?"  
"My grandparents came back from their trip today" he explained as they both opened the sliding door of the cabin and sat side by side on the left sit. "He was rushed to go back and keep, you know, welcoming them. Leaving grandpa alone with the house elves is never a good idea."  
Albus nodded.  
"Are you sure that's all? Everything's fine between you two, right?" he questioned, slightly worried, while the train started to leave.  
"Of course it is" he answered, relaxed. "I played the perfect child in an almost military level the whole summer, there's no reason why it shouldn't be."  
"Is that why you're already wearing your uniform?" he joked, touching the soft black fabric that covered Scorpius and staring at his own clothes; a pair of jeans and an old T-shirt with "Do The Hippogriff" written on it.  
Scorpius laughed and opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, Albus interrupted him.  
"What's this?" he asked, bending over to grab one of Scorpius's packs that was next to the window. He put it on his lap and stared at what had caught his attention; glued on the pack's leather, there was a piece of paper where he read, in big letters written with black ink, the words "Hell Puppy".  
Albus frowned.  
"Probably one of those idiots trying to be funny. Must have been when we were hugging with my trolley aside." Scorpius concluded, unhappily sighing. Albus looked at him and felt his heart being crushed. His face got hot and he felt sick to his stomach.  
"It was that Holland asshole. I know it was." he remembered Neil Holland, a Gryffindor one year ahead them, using that nickname on Scorpius with his friends during the classes the previous year. It wasn't right. He wouldn't allow anyone to treat Scorpius that way. "I'm gonna teach him a lesson."  
Albus pushed the paper away and got up, boiling with rage. Scorpius held him by his waist.  
"No, Albus! Don't do anything! You don't even know if it was him, and I don't care! Besides, you can't get into trouble this year!"  
But Albus pulled away from his friend, ignoring him, and opened the cabin's door. He walked for a few seconds until he heard the familiar laugh that made him disgusted and brutally opened the cabin.  
"You think that's funny, you piece of shit?" the light curly hair barely had the time to stop laughing with his two friends when Albus pulled him by the collar of his shirt and hang the paper in front of his face. "Leave Scorpius alone! It's not his fault that you're a wanker who needs to bother people to feel better about your trash personality".  
The other two boys, as skinny as him, got up from their seats in a threatening way, but with a frightened expression on their faces. Albus let Neil go, and he landed brutally on the ground.  
"Relax, boys!" he told the other two, raising both hands in an arrogant tone that didn't help making Albus's rage go away.  
"I didn't do anything to your boyfriend, Time Turner. I didn't even touch my inks and parchments yet, dude! But I did find it funny, let me know if you find out who did it."  
If Albus had followed the instincts that tried to take over him that moment, he would've punched Holland's nose with all the strength. Who the hell did he think he was? Instead, however, he took his wand and placed it on his chin.  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! There's no need for that, mate" Neil said, raising his both hands by his ears. The other two raised their wands as well, pointing them at Albus at the same time. He looked from one to the other, and told Neil:  
"If I find out you did it, or if I see any other attempt of joke towards Scorpius, you'll have to deal with me. Without your little friends."  
After that, he put down his wand, still carefully facing the other boys. They did the same.  
"You shouldn't blame people for rebelling against the little dragon, Potter."  
Albus, who was about to leave the cabin, turned to Neil again.  
"What the hell are you talking about? Since when is bullying a rebellion?"  
Neil opened a naughty smile, as if he'd been waiting for Albus to ask that question. He bended over to grab a newspaper landed on his seat, and handed The Daily Prophet's edition to Albus, who started reading the first page  
"Your pet started a wave, Albus. Death Eaters are rebelling in Azkaban. Raises and attempts of riots during all the week. They'll hardly succeed, obviously, but they're inspired, and that's dangerous. He's inspired them."  
Albus listened while his eyes flew by the headline, confirming everything that Neil was telling him; "Rebellion and Attempts of Raises keep spreading through Azkaban". Reading the text, he got shocked; apparently, when they had stopped Delphi on the previous year, wild rumors started. Someone had deduced that Scorpius - being, as believed by people, Voldemort's son - had secretly helped Delphi tricking Albus and getting the time-turner; however, when she showed that she wanted all the glory to herself, he'd decided to erase her and follow on his own. Such conspiracy theory had spread, and now lots of Death Eaters felt invited to fight, believing that Voldemort's heir was around, ready to continue his legacy.  
All of that was so absurd that Albus felt dizzy. He threw the paper to the ground and said:  
"Scorpius saved the wizard world. If it wasn't for his bravery and loyalty, I wouldn't have made it. Voldemort would be alive. This theory is the most absurd thing I've ever read, and if Death Eaters in Azkaban are bollocks enough to buy it, it's not his fault. These maniacs will always use any excuse to believe in a future that's brighter for them."  
"Maybe. But I still think that every Malfoy is a potential threat and must be contained. Perhaps we should kick him out of the train... Or do you think we should wait 'til we get to Hogwarts so we can throw him from the astronomy tower?" Neil provoked, with a disgusting sarcastic smile. Albus clenched his fists and approached him in a threatening manner, his eyebrows frowning to the point it almost hurt.  
“The only way you'll ever touch a single hair from his head is over my dead body. Don't you ever threat him again, unless you wanna wake up on the Whomping Willow with all the Ministry aurors on your back.” He said, his teeth clenched.  
“Merlin, is it possible that you can't take one single joke? I'm a pacifist. I don't hurt anyone. That's your thing, green snakes.”  
Albus looked back and gave him one last look of despise.  
“You’ve been warned.”  
With that, he bended over to grab the slightly crushed paper from the ground and left the cabin, closing it with brutality. That thing needed to be thrown away before Scorpius knew about it.  
“Dammit, huh?”  
Albus felt a pain in his chest while concluding, by looking at a blue Scorpius that waited for him right there with Jack the ferret on his shoulder, that it was too late.  
“You heard it?”  
He nodded shyly.  
“I'm glad you didn't do anything” he pointed. “It’s not worth it.”  
“But I did” Albus answered, crushing the newspaper until it became a ball. “I made it clear for that tosser that he better leave you alone. C'mon.”  
Albus touched the other boy's shoulder, leading him back to the cabin where they were.  
“It doesn't matter” Scorpius answered, unhappily sitting again. Albus sat by his side, grabbing Jack and putting him on his lap. “And even if it does help, other tossers will do the same. You heard him. I'm a potential threat.”  
“To libraries, hospitals and any place that requires silence, maybe” Albus played. Seeing that the disappointment didn't leave Scorpius's blue eyes, he frowned. “C’mon, Scorpius. Idiots have always been idiots and will continue to be. You're way bigger than that.”  
“I'm not upset about the bullying.” He answered, staring at his feet while rubbing one of his soft and clumsy hands on the other. “It’s just that, before, I was only Voldemort's son. Now I am... Voldemort 2.0. That sucks."  
Albus sighed, upset, caressing a sleepy Jack's hair while trying to think of something he could say to comfort his friend. He hated it so much to see something upsetting Scorpius. It was almost worse than having something upsetting himself – no, it was definitely worse. He wish he could see him happy all the time, excitingly chatting about one of his interests, the glow in his bright eyes that never failed to cheer Albus up. But he knew it wasn't possible. Not in Hogwarts. Not at that time. Scorpius needed him to be strong.  
“I think this is going to be another complicated year” the blonde concluded, looking through the window to the rural views that passed quickly by his eyes.  
“No.” Albus firmly answered, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. “It’s not. And you know why? Because I'll be with you the whole time. And I won't let anyone dare to upset you for one single minute. I swear. Besides... I know you'll manage to go through another year without letting yourself be put down by these jerks. You have this light, Scorpius, that shines on everything around you. I don't know how to explain it, but it's like... an aura of positivity that blocks every negative thing. I've seen it before, and I still do every time I look at you. You are so, so special, and I do believe you can be strong and keep yourself untouched by all of that."  
He felt indescribably satisfied to see that he managed to get a smile from Scorpius. A shy smile that grew when Albus smiled back, turning into a full ear to ear smile, and then a chuckle.  
“Thank you so much.” He said, letting go of Albus’s hand way too soon. “Did you know dad used to say the same about my mother?”  
Albus arched his eyebrows in answer, smiling with his right hand under his chin, and his friend went on, excited:  
“Do you think I got it from her? I mean, I don’t know if that's a genetic thing, of course, but did you know that some authors do believe that magic can hereditarily transmit some other undetectable traits? It’s just a theory, obviously, but according to Hagsted’s studies-”  
“You see?” Albus interrupted “That’s what I'm talking about. A light that manages to transform everything in positivity. That and a scary compulsion for talking, obviously.”  
He laughed as he felt a little slap on his shoulder.  
“Shut up! I liked you better a minute ago, when you were being sensitive.”  
Both boys started laughing even louder, waking Jack up on Albus's lap.  
“I suppose this year might be good for you because of our classes, too.” He said, after they stopped laughing and stayed in silence for a few seconds. “They say that fifth year's History of Magic is the most interesting.”  
“I know! I've been eargely waiting for it, Albus! Let me show you” he exclaimed, opening his pack to look for the History book they were using that year. The way Scorpius spent the next minutes digressing about the most interesting parts of the chapters he’d read on his vacations like someone who’s telling about an amazing trip they only did once in a lifetime warmed Albus’s heart and made him silently wish that they could be together forever. 

*****

Despite Albus’s promise, the first day after their first night of sleep wasn’t easy at all; during all classes and meals, students from Gryffindor – and even other houses – kept teasing Scorpius. The wizard world’s newest conspiracy theory, nonsense as it was, spreaded like gunpowder and conquered plenty of adepts.  
During transfiguration, while McGonagall was telling them about the transformations they were going to learn that year, Nicholas Morgan, a fourth year, bended over to whisper to Scorpius that he’d certainly do very well, since he had managed to turn a hufflepuff into a Death Eater. Before Albus could curse him out loud right there, like he wanted to, McGonagall punished Morgan by taking twenty points from Gryffindor, and demanded that no student was bullied during her classes or any other moment – which was great, but didn't solve much.  
Wherever the two passed by for the rest of the day, people would whisper in fear, and most of the time, their whispers involved stuff like “two-faced Malfoy”, “Potter shouldn't trust him” and “how are they still hanging out?”. Albus would answer to the whispers with frowns and eventual angry exclamations, but he always ended up having to contain himself by Scorpius's request, for his friend hated conflicts.  
The last straw for Albus, however, was when Michelle Green, a slytherin from their year, asked him, while he was going to the Owlery by himself to send his parents the usual “We arrived alright” letter, if he’d like to hang out with her and her friends. The boy readily asked if Scorpius was invited too, and when her answer was negative (followed by an “actually, we think he’s dangerous and threatens all of Slytherin’s effortful redemption, and you should stay away from him”), Albus readily asked her to piss off.  
Not even Peeves, whose humor didn’t use to be so aggressive, was immune to the ridiculous wave of disrespect towards Scorpius; whenever the two boys encountered the poltergeist on the hallways, they had to hear something like “Here comes Potter with his pet Death Eater” or “Potter and Voldemort are boyfriends now? The years really do change things!”  
Not everyone looked at Scorpius with disgust, though; on their Common Room in the dungeons, a few slytherins from seventh year excitingly asked the boy what were his plans to “continue the Dark Lord’s mission” and “clean the wizard world from that impure mess.” Scorpius didn’t answer; he simply ignored them and looked for Albus on their dorm to tell him immediatly. Knowing that there were still people among them who thought like Voldemort wasn’t exactly a surprise, but it always scared Scorpius. Maybe for having grown up in a family where almost everyone had a Dark Mark on their arm, that subject was specially delicate for him, who shaked at any sign of suprematist thought.  
Besides that, however, Scorpius insisted in guaranteeing his friend that everything was fine and he didn't need to stress out. But Albus knew, while facing his friend's blue eyes that seemed to get deeper and less bright every class, that this was being terrible for him. It made Albus want to cry and stupefy everyone who wronged him.  
After a few more tiring classes, a bath and a hurried dinner at the Great Hall, Albus and Scorpius were alone at Slytherin's Common Room, the sound of the tip of their feathers scratching parchments being the only audible thing. That and the loud laughing of their three Slytherin's fifth year mates in their dorm, while Albus did his potions homework over the room's center table, sat on the carpet on the ground – still angry at Slughorn for giving them homework on their first day – and Scorpius drew random things on a parchment over his legs, sat on the couch behind him.  
“If you're already finished, can I borrow it?” Albus suggested looking at him. Scorpius didn't move his eyes, focused on his drawing in an adorable way. “I'm terrible at talking about roots' mixes.”  
Scorpius looked back at him and frowned.  
“And how are you supposed to learn like that? Our O.W.L.s are this year, Albus!” he replied, but grabbed his potions book from inside his backpack anyway. “My homework's folded inside it. But promise you'll try to understand what you're copying!”  
“Of course I will.” Albus said with a smile, and winked at his friend. At the same time he wrote down and tried to comprehend the most he could from Scorpius's tidy notes about the magical properties of the Valerian's roots, he would take small breaks to throw little pieces of raw meat from a metallic pot in his pocket at Jack, who was lying a few feet away. By the time both the pot and his homework were on the half, he heard Scorpius putting his peace of parchment back in his backpack and shighing loudly.  
“Something wrong?” he asked, interrupting his notes to stare at the other boy. When he noticed the blonde's unhappy expression, he dropped his feather and turned his body completely so he could fully look at him, his back against the center table. “What is it, Scorp?”  
“It's nothing” Scorpius answered, shaking his head. “I was just... Thinking of something.”  
Albus arches his eyebrows, waiting for him to say more.  
“Albus...” he went on, frowning in curiosity. “Haven’t you ever thought of going somewhere else? Like, far from here? A new life?”  
Albus felt sad.  
“Are you talking about our dickhead classmates?” he questioned.  
“No! I mean, it's not just that. It's just that... Don't you want to meet new people? Go to new places? Maybe some place where no one knows who you are? Explore the world with no labels to limit you? Find your soulmate?  
Albus replied with a smirk.  
“I thought you had given up on that after it didn't work out with Rose? Scorpius, you are my soulmate.” He said. Scorpius widened his eyes, and only then he realized that maybe he had gone a little too far, so he added: “I mean, yeah, it’d be nice to meet new people, but I’m more than satisfied with you and our friendship, Scorpius. If you’re with me, I’m fulfilled."  
Scorpius smiled shyly.  
“That is... A very nice thing to say, Al. And I'm satisfied with having you, too. But... I don't know, didn't you ever felt like trying-“  
“Wait a minut” Albus interrupted “Why do I get the feeling that this isn't about me?”  
The blonde bit his lip, seeming apprehensive, as if he was hiding something.  
“Scorp... Do you have anything you'd like to talk about?”  
For some odd reason, Scorpius was sweating, and Albus was getting more worried every second.  
“It wasn't easy” he said carefully, as if any wrong world could activate a bomb. “But dad always gets what he wants. When I said that Hogwarts was becoming harder and harder for me every year, he got more determined than I'd ever seen him. So... I'm leaving after my O.W.L.s. I'll finish my studies and prepare myself for my N.E.W.T.s in Durmstrang.  
Albus's heart raced, and he felt like the walls were closing around him, threatening to crush him. He gulped, starting to shake and feeling his voice disappearing.  
That couldn't be true. Not after everything they'd been trough. It had to be a nightmare.


	2. A Whole New World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I can open your eyes  
> Take you wonder by wonder  
> Over sideways and under  
> On a magic carpet ride  
> A whole new world  
> A new fantastic point of view  
> No one to tell us no  
> Or where to go  
> Or say we're only dreaming  
> A whole new world  
> A dazzling place I never knew  
> But when I'm way up here  
> It's crystal clear  
> That now I'm in a whole new world with you

"No, you won't" that was what Albus managed to reply, heavily breathing. "I mean, you can't. No, Scorpius, please... That's not necessary. You can't leave me..."  
He felt a weight on his chest while speaking, his voice shaking, as if he was losing something that had been the center of everything for him for years - which was true. Scorpius was the best part of his life; without him, everything would be harder. He still shook at the memory of when they'd been forced to get away from each other during several days on the previous year; that was, undoubtedly, the hardest thing he had ever gone through at Hogwarts. How could he survive two more years without him?  
Scorpius closed his eyes and took a long breath, his face filled with sadness.  
"I am so sorry, Albus" he said in a weak tone of voice, hating himself for the look of despair in the other boy's eyes. "I swear I didn't want it to come to this. But I just can't do it anymore. I can't, Al. It kills me to have to make this decision, but I'm afraid that staying here in the middle of all this toxic shit it's going to kill me even more. I'm sorry."  
Albus tried to speak, but all that came out of his mouth was incomprehensible noises. He wanted to tell Scorpius that he needed to stay, that his life at Hogwarts would be a nightmare without him, that being with him was the most pleasant thing he had ever experienced and he wasn't ready to give that up. But he knew that wasn't what Scorpius needed to hear. He had to see things his way. Scorpius had lost his mother recently, and having to deal with all of that while still adjusting to the absence of the person he'd loved the most was too much to ask.  
Albus took a deep breath. Holding back a tear that tried to stream down his face, he said:  
"You don't need to be sorry. I'm the one who... I'm so sorry, Scorp. I thought our friendship was enough for you like it is for me. I'm not mad, I understand you. I haven't been a good friend, I've been selfish, I'm so sorry..."  
"It's not that, Albus!" The blonde exclaimed, shaking his head, his eyes wet too. "Do not feel guilty, please. You are a great friend. I love what we have. It's just that..."  
He seemed to hesitate, calculating his words. Albus looked at him while closing his own arms around his legs.  
"I... I - I... Everyone hates me here" He went on. Hearing that, Albus felt something in his chest that would probably make the Cruciatus curse feel like a massage. "And the ones who don't only like me because they think I'm building a pure-blood supremacy group. It sucks. And I don't need any of them to be my friend, because you are more than enough, but... I'm used to being ignored, maybe a little despised, but not feared or hated. I just wanna be somewhere I can be respected as a human being".  
Albus put his face down, laying his forehead on his knees. He took a deep breath while letting the hot tears stream down his face - tears he wouldn't allow Scorpius to notice, so he tried not to make any noise while letting them down. All of that was the most painful thing he had ever heard; even more than when his father had told him that "Sometimes, I wish you weren't my son". Scorpius was too pure, too sweet, too precious to be submitted to all that pain. It made Albus want to punch a wall and shout against the whole world; but once again, he mentally repeated the motto he couldn't forget about: "Scorpius needs me to be strong".  
After a few seconds, he wiped his tears in his own sleeves, being as careful as he could so Scorpiud wouldn't notice, and looked at him again.  
"I'm so sorry for you, Scorp. I really am" He said, staring at the floor and hoping to say the right things. "I wish I could trade our reputations, I swear I would... You deserve to be praised, not me. I was reckless and stupid, and you stayed by my side and saved my ass the whole time. You're the hero. I wish they would hate me instead".  
"Don't say that, Albus!" He replied. "You don't deserve to be hated at all".  
"I know I don't. It's just that I deal with hate better than you do" He explained. "You're too sweet for all this negativity, and it breaks my heart. You're the purest, kindest wizard in this whole castle, and I wish I could do something so no one would ever be mean to you..."  
"But you can't" Scorpius concluded, playing with the belt of his robes while talking. "And it's okay. You already do too much for me, Albus. Gosh, I'm grateful for having you in a way words will never be able to explain. But not even your company can make my fragile soul fit into this place".  
Albus nodded and looked up, thoughtful. He had to be strong and think of what was best for Scorpius - he couldn't expect his friend to give up on his own emotional stability for him. Scorpius was free to be where he felt better at. But, on the other hand, he couldn't just give up on the most important person in his life, could he?  
After thinking for a few seconds, while the sad blonde caressed a pillow like it was a pet, Albus finally said:  
"Look, Scorpius... Being without you will completely crack my soul. And if I can choose, I will always want you to stay. But I also think you have to do what's best for you. I can't be selfish. So, if you do end up leaving Hogwarts because you don't feel good in here anymore, I'll support you. I will always support you. But..."  
He hesitated, reconsidering what he was about to say.  
"But...?" Scorpius questioned, and Albus opened a tiny grin.  
"It's so early, don't you think? Our school year has barely began. Why don't you wait for it to end before you think about that? You said yourself you're going to finish fifth year anyway, so... If you give me a chance, I swear I'll try to make this place more bearable for you. Don't ask me how, I just will. I'll do everything I can to give you a hell of a great year, and then, if even after that you decide Hogwarts just isn't for you, well, I guess there's nothing else I can do but encourage you. But until there, I'm not just giving up on you. For nothing. No way. I'm not asking you to change your mind now, I'm just asking you to be open and give me a chance. Fair, don't you think?"  
Scorpius bit his lip.  
"Al... You don't have to make any effort for me, really..."  
"But I do!" He interrupted, now a lot more cheered up. "Scorpius, you give me uncountable reasons to keep here everyday just by being you. So, if I have to do the same for you, I will. Always. I promise By the end of this year, Hogwarts will be the most pleasant place on Earth for you. Or my name isn't Albus Potter."  
Scorpius looked at him, astonished, and couldn't contain a smile. Albus was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and he was more sure of that each day. Looking at him, the blonde felt something growing inside of him.  
"Well" He answered "I guess I can't stop you from doing your job as the best friend in the world, can I?"  
Albus opened a wide smile too.  
"No, you can't. I'm glad you know it".  
Scorpius still doubted that he would come to like Hogwarts, but he felt better to know that, at least for one school year, Albus would be aware of everything he felt - well, almost everything - and trying to help him. Besides, looking into the other boy's green eyes, feeling the warmth of their closeness that could almost be perceived in the air, he couldn't avoid feeling a small spark of hope that Albus would, indeed, manage to change things. Maybe he was being naive, but when it came to Albus, it was impossible not to raise hopes.  
Albus got up from the floor and approached Scorpius, hugging him so tight that the blonde had trouble breathing, but didn't care; he hugged him back even tighter, putting his chin on the other's shoulder. The two kept hugging for a few minutes, not saying a word, just feeling each other's warmth and craving for more contact, although it was practically impossible that the hug got tighter. Putting on the physical contact all the words he had never said enough and was afraid to pronounce, Albus felt lucky. And determined, like he never was before, to stop that luck from escaping him. He would fight for Scorpius until the end, and that was a promise to himself more than to the other boy. 

***** 

During that first week, Albus strongly compromised to his new purpose. He had some bold ideas to make their experience at Hogwarts more exciting, and started researching on them, but there was a initial price that he hadn't foreseen; among the studying and classes, that didn't take long to become way more intense than in the previous years, it was hard to conciliate his secret "researches" on the library with their free time, and Scorpius ended up spending more hours without him than he'd like to. In order for his friend not to feel so alone, Albus would select, among his researches on the library, books he thought his friend would enjoy reading. This way, Scorpius had something to do during the nights at the Common Room.  
Besides, the two of them had created their own particular game; Albus would write, in a piece of parchment, an improvised beginning of a story for Scorpius to continue it while he was absent. Not only this kept Scorpius busy, but it was also like he was with Albus during his nights on the library, and the two of them managed to create some actually interesting stories about dragons who didn't fly and uncontrolled brooms.  
On weekends, as usual, they would spend the whole time together. To make it different, however, they had started doing some new stuff; at Albus's suggestion, they spent saturday's and sunday's afternoon outside the castle, which was something entirely new, for Scorpius preferred to stay in the Common Room, away from unrequited stares. But sitting under the weak autumn's sunlight with the boy at the edge of the Lake, watching the Giant Squid show its tentacles and hide again and smelling the nature while laughing at stupid jokes with the nicest person in the world, Scorpius didn't feel uncomfortable at all. By night, they used Albus's invisibility cloak to go sneaking to the Astronomy Tower, where they talked and watched the stars until the dawn came and sleep beat them.  
It wasn't long, too, until Scorpius didn't need to be alone anymore while Albus researched alone in the library about whatever was taking him so long until it was time to go back to the dorms; on monday, during his night free time, he decided to pass by the kitchen to grab some late snack, and found a blonde-hair light eyes boy with a kind expression, and with him, a girl with dark hair and olive skin. The two of them excitingly chatted with the cooking house elves and greeted Scorpius in friendly manners, which surprised the boy. Before he noticed, the three of them were in a good minutes conversation about Hogwarts' history and the advance of elves' rights through the years.  
The boy, a third year hufflepuff, was Lorcan Scamander, one of the children of the famous scholar Rolf Scamander and his wife, Luna Lovegood, known by her contributions to esoteric magic, exotic herbology and her activism for the house elves. His friend was Bhamina Patil, a fifth year Ravenclaw whose family ascended from India that Scorpius had seen a few times in classes. She was very kind and smart too, so the boy started meeting them both again everyday on his free time. At the Great Hall, the three would spend hours discussing politics, history, science or simply sharing funny stories. And neither one of them ever teased or seemed to judge Scorpius - in fact, not even the previous year's infamous occurrences were mentioned. That was truly unexpected, and he was very excited to finally make more friends with whom he didn't need to feel apprehensive.  
On friday, exactly one week after Albus started his mysterious night researches, he woke Scorpius up by excitingly shaking him.  
"Get up, sleepy lizard!" he exclaimed, kneeling over the blonde's bed and holding his shoulders. "We have two History of Magic classes today and one Defense Against The Dark Arts!"  
Scorpius rubbed his eyes, blinking heavily while looking confused around him. When his eyes met Albus's, he smiled.  
"Since when do you get excited about having classes with Beans and Watterson?" He asked, still dizzy.  
"Well..." Albus's lips formed a smirk. "Maybe there's a surprise waiting for you at the end of the day..."  
Scorpius joined his eyebrows and half-closed his eyes, in a fake frown.  
"Is that why you stayed up so late on the library yesterday?"  
"Maybe. You're gonna have to wait and see it. Now c'mon, cheer up, it's friday!"  
Scorpius stretched and got up. He got changed and the two of them left the dorms towards the History of Magic's classroom.  
"Things are gonna get really exciting, Scorp" Albus said while they walked through the moving stone stairs. The boy hadn't stopped smiling ever since they'd left the dormitory, and Scorpius was really curious. "There is so much to do at Hogwarts, did you know? Things no one would imagine. I've been reading a lot, and our expedition to a whole new world starts today!"  
"I have no idea what you're talking about, but it sounds interesting" Scorpius laughed. "I just hope it doesn't involve us getting detention. Or expelled".  
"Don't worry, I have my ways" He winked at Scorpius. "There's so much different stuff to do and find, Scorp! Just wait. It's gonna be awesome! But, of course, uh, no pressure or anything".  
The blonde nodded, laughing a little.  
"I don't..." Albus babbled, awkwardly. "I don't mean to be stubborn or force you to... You know... I'm just trying to make you have some good moments".  
"It's alright, Albus" he replied, touching the other boy's shoulder and looking into his eyes, and the two of them stopped walking and stood still in the crowded hallway. "I'm sure I will".  
Albus nodded with a warm smile. They stared at each other for several seconds, Albus distracted in Scorpius's bright eyes, while the blonde gave his friend a look of fondness, thankful for all the effort he was doing, when all the movement of students around them woke him from his daydreams and he said:  
"I think we better keep going. Beans is a pain in the ass when it comes to delays".  
"Oh, right" Albus agreed, shaking his head and undoing his dreamy smile while his friend took his hands off his shoulders.  
When they got to the classroom and sat together at a desk in the corner - luckily, a few moments before Beans's ghost came out of the wall - Bhamina, who was sittig two desks ahead with another girl, waved at Scorpius and smiled. The boy greeted her back, and Albus said:  
"You seem to be really getting along with her and the other. Are they actually nice?"  
"Yes" Scorpius answered, looking at his friend. "We have nice chats".  
Albus looked from the blonde to the girl with an expression of curiosity.  
"That's something new, right?" He questioned, while playing with his feather between his fingers. "One of us befriending other people".  
Scorpius gave him a look of strangeness.  
"C'mon, Al. You're not jealous, are you?" He asked, chuckling.  
"Of course I'm not!" Albus laughed as well, but a nervous, not very secure chuckle. "I'm happy for you, Scorpius. It's good to see you interacting with people who treat you well. I can't wait to meet them".  
The other boy bit his lip.  
"You... Want to meet them? Are you sure?"  
"Why not? Unless... You don't want me to meet them...?" He half closed his eyes, suspicious.  
"No, of course I do! It's just that I'm not sure you guys would get along..."  
"If they're your friends, I'm sure we would" He snapped back.  
"Well, but they have common interests with me, you know... 'Nerd' stuff. You know, that part of me that doesn't quite interest you".  
"What are you talking about? Every part of you interests me, Scorpius" He replied, staring right through his friend's eyes.  
Scorpius smiled shyly, feeling his face blush. However, he said:  
"And are you sure you're not just wanting to... You know... Piss on your territory?"  
Albus laughed  
"No, jackass. You're not a territory to me. And I know I don't need to be jealous".  
"And you really don't" Scorpius added, firmly. "You will always be my best friend, Albus. What we have is so big, I just can't picture anyone replacing you. Like, ever. Not in a million years".  
Albus opened a smile that was almost larger than his face. The satisfaction of hearing that was so big that his heart raced.  
"You will always be my best friend, too". He replied.  
The two boys were abruptly taken off their moment when a loud coughing called their attention. Looking ahead, they found professor Beans facing them with an expression of disgust on his ghostly face - not that he had any other expression the rest of the time. Some bored students also stared at them from their seats.  
"If you gentlemen are already finished, do you think you could allow me to begin my class, Potter and Malfoy?".  
The two of them nodded awkwardly and opened their books without looking at each other while Beans floated back to the front of the classroom and the other students took their eyes off of them. 

Later, after an exhaustive herbology class with professor Longbottom, the last of the day, Scorpius was being pulled by the arm by an excited Albus, not knowing exactly where they were headed to.  
"What's this, Al?" He questioned, laughing while Albus's warm hand kept pulling him with hurry, both running through the stairs and hallways towards the dungeons. "You don't think it's too early for us to begin our exploring?"  
"It is" Albus answered, turning his smiling face at him for a fraction of a second, without interrupting his running. "But it's not too early for me to give you a hint".  
"So you're a tease" The blonde replied, raising an eyebrow.  
Before Albus could reply him, they were stopped on the hallway by Filch.  
"Potter! Malfoy! No running on the hallways!"  
"Oh, we're sorry, Filch" Albus said, looking at the grumpy janitor. "Won't happen again".  
The two stopped running, puffy, and calmly walked the rest of the way to the dungeons, while Albus kept smirking at Scorpius, who smiled back.  
After passing under the stairs and behind the stone wall at the dungeons' hallway and quickly saying the password that gave them access to Slytherin's Room - "Merlin" - Albus started walking in large hurried steps again while guiding Scorpius to their dorm.  
"So, what are you hiding here that's so exciting?" he questioned when they arrived, sitting on his bed while Albus opened his leather pack, still not completely undone since the first day of school, excitingly searching for something through clothes and personal belongings.  
Instead of answering to Scorpius's question, he grabbed a piece of paper folded in the middle from the bottom of the mess of stuff in the pack and threw it at the boy. Scorpius tried to unfold the yellow parchment, but didn't manage to, like there was some sort of invisible seal on it. Realizing what that meant, he frowned at Albus.  
"Don't tell me that's what I'm thinking it is" He said, to what Albus replied with a nod, smirking while biting his lower lip. "Albus! You're terrible!"  
"It's our ticket to amazing things, Scorp!" the other protested, getting up and approaching him. Placing his wand on the paper, he proclaimed: "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good".  
Letters appeared - Misters Moony, Prongs, Padfoot and Wormtail presenting The Marauder's Map - and Albus opened the map to face the plant of the whole inside of the school with small names moving through it everywhere.  
"So, after everything we've been through last year, your idea to have fun is getting into more trouble?" Scorpius asked, in awe.  
"Don't be such a straitlaced, Scorp" Albus seemed offended "We still got daddy's invisibility cloak. He did everything he could to hide this map from me after last year's events, but James can find you anything if you ask him properly. What we're going to do is no big deal, there's just some things around here that I think you'd enjoy seeing".  
Scorpius considered, his forehead wrinkled. He really thought it was cute of Albus to do all of that, even though he didn't find it necessary, and doing some naughty stuff with him was always nice. Besides, he thought he could risk himself a little more, considering that would probably be his last year at Hogwarts. However, he still said:  
"What if we end up in a foul-up, Albus? I'm leaving Hogwarts, but I don't want you getting expelled because of me!"  
"They would never expell Harry Potter's son" He pointed out. "And neither Draco Malfoy's. Especially in our O.W.L.s year. The worst that can happen to us is facing a few detentions together - but it won't, because no one's gonna catch us".  
Scorpius rolled his eyes and chuckled.  
"I guess it's fine for me" He said, shrugging. "If you're really into this idea of making us the new Marauders, okay".  
Albus hugged Scorpius and playfully kissed his cheek.  
"You're the best!" He said, jumping from joy while the blonde cleaned his cheek and tried to pretend that joking peck hadn't make him blush and his heart race a little. "I knew you would agree. It's gonna be amazing, I promise". 

Around midnight, when everyone was asleep in their beds, Scorpius and Albus, who still hadn't managed to close their eyes, got up, grabbed their wands and the Marauder's Map, awkwardly covered themselves with the Invisibility Cloak and left the dorms towards wherever it was that Albus wanted to take him.  
While slowly walking through the hallways, checking the map under the dim light coming from Albus's wand so they could avoid having to pass by Filch, Scorpius was dying to ask where they were headed to, but he thought it would be less risky to stay silent, so he would just look at his friend with curiosity, and he smirked in answer.  
They kept climbing more and more stairs for about ten minutes, until they got to the seventh floor. Guided by Albus, he entered the hallway to the left, and they finally stopped.  
"There's nothing here". Scorpius whispered in the lowest tone he could, looking confused at the map. Albus didn't answer him; he just signed for him to be silent with his finger on his lips, turned to the stone wall in the hallway ahead them and closed his eyes.  
Scorpius looked at the wall, wondering what would that be, and raised his eyebrows in surprise when, ahead them, where there was only an empty thick wall, a small wooden door appeared.  
"No way!" He whispered to his friend, who abandoned his moment of focus and opened his eyes to look at the blonde. "The Room of Requirement?"  
Albus just nodded, shoulder to shoulder with Scorpius, and their noses touched for one second, which distracted them for a few moments. However, Albus soon put himself ahead him again and led him to the door. The two of them passed through it, closing it behind them, and took the cloak off.  
"Don't worry" Albus said when they entered the large and well illuminated room, filled with huddled objects everywhere. "I specifically required that no one else is able to enter while we're here".  
Scorpius looked around, entranced.  
"Albus, this is awesome!" He exclaimed, smiling. "I've heard about this room, of course, but no student knows where it is! How did you find out?"  
"It's amazing what you can find looking through the right books" He answered, looking proud of himself. "I wish it hadn't took me so long to learn that from you."  
Scorpius nodded, looking at Albus with affection.  
"Well, look who's the Hermione Granger wannabe now. I'm proud of you".  
"Shut up!" Albus laughed, approaching him to slap his shoulder. "Come on, there is something specifical I'm looking for here".  
The two boys passed by a few piles of magical objects stacked on the marble floor and under the vaulted ceiling, and Scorpius would stare at them with deep interest, but taking care of not touching anything.  
After a few steps, Albus stopped, and he could see a tall and apparently old mirror ahead him. It was also very wide and decorated with golden details.  
"What's..." Scorpius was about to ask, but interrupted himself when he looked up to the top of the mirror and read a phrase he recognized from the books he had read trough his life; the phrase that seemed to be in a different language, but read backwards, said: "I show not your face, but your heart's desire".  
"The Mirror of Erised" He concluded, stupefied, and looked at Albus. "I can't believe it!"  
"Awesome, huh?" Albus exclaimed with a smile. "Now... Look into it, Scorpius. Tell me your biggest desire and I'll see what I can do to fulfill it".  
Scorpius laughed at his friend.  
"You kill me, Albus".  
"I'm not joking" He said, joining his eyebrows with seriousness. "I wanna help you accomplish it. We have the whole year".  
Scorpius opened his mouth, surprised. He thought of saying something, but wasn't able to. He couldn't believe Albus had taken him all the way there to find out what was his biggest desire and try to fulfill it. As stupid as it seemed, that left him speechless and watered his eyes. Albus was truly an undescribable person.  
"So... What do you see? Because I'm not sure that thing's working for me..."  
With his friend's question, Scorpius half closed his eyes so he could have a better view of the image ahead him, but he didn't see anything he expected to.  
Ahead him, on the glass of the mirror created to show his deepest desire, he saw nothing but the reflection of them both. Albus and him, together, side by side, just like they were at that very moment. Nothing else.  
Just Albus and him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoy it and leave some comments! If you do, I promise I'll try not to take so long for the next update :p 
> 
> And yes, I'm that person who puts an Aladdin song on a Scorbus fanfic, because reasons.

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to comment your thoughts! I read The Cursed Child recently and was so pissed that these two didn't end up together I just had to write something myself. Hope you guys enjoy it <3


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